Miscues plague Mustangs in postseason loss to Hawks

STATE CENTER — If Prairie City-Monroe's baseball team could choose to never play at West Marshall's home field again, the Mustangs just might make that decision.

Unfortunately, that won't happen as the Trojans are set to join the Heart of Iowa Conference next season and PCM will be making a trip to their home turf every regular season.

At least the Mustangs will get a little more practice for the postseason. Because the last two times PCM has played there, the defense has committed 15 total errors.

On Monday, PCM had seven miscues and the pitchers also walked five batters during an 8-7 loss to South Hamilton in Class 2A District 13 quarterfinal action.

"I don't know what it is with playing here, but we just always struggle," PCM baseball coach Jeff Lindsay said. "You hate that that happens, but you have to find ways to get through it."

The Mustangs battled through the ups and downs. The game was scheduled to take place Saturday but rain and lightning forced a suspension to Monday.

PCM led 5-4 when play stopped over the weekend. South Hamilton, which defeated the Mustangs three times this season, took the lead for good with a three-run fifth inning.

The fourth-seeded Mustangs got within one run two different times after losing the lead but just couldn't get over the hump.

"I thought the guys competed well. It would have been real easy when we got down the past couple of days to put their heads down, but they didn't," Lindsay said. "They kept fighting and I appreciate that."

South Hamilton scored three runs in the first inning back on Saturday and then Durant Van Dyke's two-out, two-run double made it 3-2 after one inning.

The Hawks (8-7) plated another runner against PCM starter Beau Webb to go up 4-2. But the Mustangs (7-9) got production from the bottom of their lineup to go back in front.

Gabe Steenhoek reached on an error, Kolten Johnson walked and Connor Bennett loaded the bases with a bunt single.

Run-scoring infield singles by Sage Burns and Dane Owens and an RBI fielder's choice by Andrew Mitchell put PCM in front 5-4.

The game was suspended with two outs in the bottom of the third inning and it was completed on Monday.

Colfax-Mingo's district quarterfinal game with third-seeded West Marshall also was washed out on Saturday. The Trojans eliminated the sixth-seeded Tigerhawks 13-3 in six innings on Monday.

Fifth-seeded South Hamilton advanced to play top-seeded Roland-Story at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in Story City. West Marshall faces second-seeded Des Moines Christian in the 4:30 p.m. game in Story City.

When play resumed between PCM and South Hamilton on Monday, both pitchers — PCM's Mitchell and South Hamilton's Elijah Balderas — were on their games.

Both pitchers struck out a pair in the fourth inning. The Hawks were able to take advantage of back-to-back two-out errors in the fifth inning.

Mitchell got the first two outs in the frame but the errors extended South Hamilton's at-bat. Two batters later, the Hawks had a 7-5 lead.

The Mustangs answered with one of their own in the fifth. Owens singled and scored on Caleb Duinink's RBI double. PCM couldn't take advantage of a one-out error though and trailed 7-6 after fifth innings.

South Hamilton scored another unearned run in the sixth. Tycin Barkema walked and went to second and third on wild pitches. After another walk, Barkema scored on a throwing error to first base during an attempted pick off play.

That would be all the Hawks got, but it was enough for Balderas. He struck out six in four innings and got the win after allowing two runs on four hits.

"He throws different speeds of fast balls. From my view, he must have done a good job of spotting because he was getting the calls on the outside," Lindsay said. "We needed to be ready to swing the stick because he throws strikes."

Balderas got the Mustangs in order in the sixth, but Owens started the seventh with an infield single. He went to second on a passed ball.

After two strikeouts, Webb delivered an RBI single to center field. That wasn't enough though as the game ended with a pop fly to shortstop.

"Despite how we played defensively, and where we were sitting, we still had a chance to win in the last inning. It's just unfortunate," Lindsay said. "We gave ourselves an opportunity. Unfortunately, we didn't get enough guys across the plate."

Webb started on the mound for PCM and pitched three innings on Saturday, allowing four earned runs on eight hits with one walk and one hit batter.

Mitchell took the loss, pitching 2 1/3 innings and surrendering four runs — none earned — on one hit with two walks and two strikeouts.

Brown pitched 1 2/3 innings and allowed no runs on no hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

Owens had three hits, two runs and an RBI to lead the offense. Van Dyke had one hit and two RBIs and Duinink, Mitchell, Burns and Webb all had one hit and one RBI.

"It's been an up and down the lineup thing most of the year," Lindsay said. "We have had guys that have produced all year. There's not an easy out in there."

Mitchell added a run and Duinink chipped in a walk. Bennett had one hit and one run, Johnson walked once and scored a run and Steenhoek and Nigel Sperfslage each scored a run.

Quinton Grove led the Hawks with three hits, two runs and two RBIs and Carter Hewitt chipped in two hits, one run and one RBI.